Dynamite
by Tomoe Mami
Summary: Decode pre-canon AU. Twin heirs to GIGO, Taiga and Yuuya reconnect after seventeen years of not knowing each other. A scandal is loose, so Niko and Akiho join the siblings in getting it solved.
1. Chapter 1

**Characters** : Taiga, Yuuya, Akiho and Niko.

 **Chapter word count** : 1500.

 **Story word count** : 1500.

* * *

"They are what?" Taiga asked the person on the other end of his mobile. He knew him as Kuga Yuuya and that he was the son of the GIGO manager. Sitting backwards on his chair and with his spare hand, he idly played with a lock of his black-blue hair.

"Father says they're called Digimon. It's short for digital monsters, apparently." Taiga heard the other teen's smugness through the device and wanted to, at least once, punch him in the face.

Taiga sighed and mulled over things before answering. "How would he know what they're called?"

"You would ask that." The other boy gave an exhale and leaned back in his computer chair, judging by the creak the arm made.

Taiga thought he heard the beep of a V-Pet and opened his mouth to speak again. "Was that a V-Pet beep I just heard?"

Yuuya laughed, amused by the question. "It was, yes. You have your own, right?"

"I do have one," he answered, smiling to himself. "His name is Digimaru."

"I call mine Black," Yuuya responded. "It's not like they'll become real." He didn't have anything to worry about. None of them did; none of their V-Pets were going to suddenly materialize.

The conversation turned to their V-Pets and whether or not they had any emotions. A loud beep came from Taiga's V-Pet, as if it was expressing its indignation and Taiga had to stifle his laugh.

"I think they do, Yuuya." He replied through his chuckling. "Mine just squawked at me."

A snort came from the other end, but Taiga couldn't tell if it was laughter or derision. "Black's too cool for that. He's very aloof. A lot of times where I've thought he's needed attention, he said he didn't."

Taiga hummed in agreement. "Sounds pretty reserved. Third level, right?"

"Yes. Same as yours?"

To Taiga, it sounded like Yuuya was preparing to shift their conversation online when he heard the beep of the computer as it turned on.

"Yeah, he's at the same stage. Black's a BlackAgumon?"

Yuuya made a noise of agreement as he typed something on the keyboard. "You have an Agumon." The statement sounded final.

Taiga found himself defending his choice. "I've always liked Agumon. They make good-natured V-Pets."

Yuuya didn't reply immediately, which left Taiga wondering if he was still on the other end. Eventually, he did. "You must be the hero-type if you're saying that."

"I can be at times." Taiga admitted, remembering the time he jumped off a rooftop to save a random V-Pet. Not that it was his V-Pet, but the girl was grateful all the same.

Yuuya couldn't help but laugh at this. He barely knew Taiga, but they got along like siblings did at the best of times. "Whose V-Pet was it?"

Taiga snorted in amusement. "Oh, some random girl's from two years ago." He explained she'd been running on the roof and tripped, losing her grip on her V-Pet. He bravely jumped off the roof after it.

Taiga got up and sat in his chair properly, pressing a key on his keyboard to bring his computer out of sleep mode. He opened the window to the chat room, just as Yuuya spoke.

"Are you ready?"

Taiga entered his username and pressed enter. "I am now. Your turn."

Yuuya entered his own details and the chat room appeared.

THE **DIGIMON** CHAT ROOM HAS BEEN OPENED

 **Taiga** has entered the room

 **Yuuya** has entered the room

 **Taiga** : Hey :)

 **Yuuya** : Hey.

 **Rina** has entered the room

 **Rina** : Hello~

 **Yuuya** : -_-;

 **Taiga** : Lol… I didn't think it'd be so popular

 **Yuuya** : We've got nothing better to do. No one likes doing homework :P

 **Rina** : You shouldn't say that! How else do you expect to pass if you don't study?

 **Yuuya** : We don't even know you.

 **Yuuya** : I'll be fine. I'm quite smart.

 **Rina** : You totally disregarded my name right there.

 **Taiga** : Chill out, you two. No need for a fight.

 **Yuuya** : This Rina person just comes out of nowhere, acting like she knows everything!

 **Rina** : …

 **Yuuya** : XP

 **Taiga** : (sighs) Enough, guys. Anyway, Rina, do you have a V-Pet as well?

 **Rina** : Yes, I do :D His name is V.V

 **Yuuya** : (somewhat interested) … What kind of Digimon is V.V?

 **Rina** : He's a V-mon :) He's a really good friend.

 **Taiga** : Nice work, Rina. ^_^ I have an Agumon called Digimaru and Yuuya has Black.

 **Yuuya** : He's a BlackAgumon.

 **Rina** : Digimaru?

 **Taiga** : (sweat-drops) Yeah, it's unusual, but he likes it.

 **Rina** : I think it's a cool name. I like it. :D

 **Taiga** : Wow, thanks. That means a lot.

 **Yuuya** : Forgetting someone, are we?

 **Taiga** : (laughs) No, of course not. Just got carried away.

 **Yuuya** : Sure (smirks)

 **Taiga** : Totally random question for everyone. How old are you?

 **Rina** : … Why?

 **Taiga** : Just so we know each a little more if we were to ever meet.

 **Yuuya** : Seventeen.

 **Rina** : Sixteen, turning seventeen.

 **Taiga** : And seventeen. :D

 **Yuuya** : Who says we're even going to meet up? Taiga?

 **Taiga** : I'm sure we will at some point. Right? The district can't be that big.

 **Rina** : (gets excited) I so can't wait. Let's meet up tomorrow. Is that alright, guys?

 **Yuuya** : … Don't know. Have to study for college. Ask Taiga.

 **Taiga** : Yeah, sorry Rina. Maybe next time. I'm fairly busy during the day.

 **Rina** : Doing what?

 **Taiga** : Preparing for different things. Sorry I can't be of any more use to you.

 **Rina** : (nods, understanding) It's perfectly fine. I understand.

 **Taiga** : Oh great. :) My friends are here, Niko and Akiho. If I ever meet you, Yuuya, I'd introduce you to them. They're really nice people.

 **Taiga** : I'm Niko. Taiga let us use his keyboard for a minute. Protect Taiga, okay? Something's up with GIGO.

 **Taiga** : Niko? Honestly -_-; Hi, I'm Akiho. Pleasure to meet you. Would like to see you soon.

 **Taiga** : Whoa guys, don't overload Yuuya with so many theories and stuff. I'm back, Yuuya. (pokes above miserably with a stick) Sorry about that.

 **Yuuya** : It's fine. Tell Niko not to spread slander about GIGO, though. I will fix my parents' mistakes.

 **Taiga** : Okay. … Oh? Niko and Akiho need to tell me something important. See you later, you two.

 **Rina** : Bye~ I can come back, right?

 **Yuuya** : Bye.

 **Taiga** has left the room.

Taiga turned his computer off and swivelled his comfortable computer chair around to face Niko and Akiho. "What is it, guys?" He asked, grinning. He was excited to see them, after all.

"There's no easy way to say this." Niko began cautiously. "I wasn't slandering GIGO, either. Tell Yuuya that."

"Next time, though." Akiho added softly, before continuing. "Taiga, what we're trying to say is… There was a big outrage at GIGO seventeen years ago."

Nikolai nodded carefully. "We researched the information after you told us you were talking to Yuuya, who we knew as the son of GIGO's boss."

Taiga remained quiet, taking in what his friends were telling him. What was this big outrage they were so worried about? He wasn't sure what was going on.

"Seventeen years ago, you were born, but so was Yuuya." Akiho clarified, seeing her friend's confusion. "The outrage was _twins_ were born."

Taiga blinked, still not seeing the connection. It was known that he was kind of silly, but even he knew he wasn't _that_ slow to pick up on clues that were given. He just failed to see how he could be Yuuya's brother.

Niko gave a loud cry of frustration.

"Taiga… We believe you and Yuuya are siblings," Akiho pointed out. Because who wouldn't point out the obvious clues?

Niko rolled his eyes, but was smiling. "You're both the same age and your hair colours are almost identical."

"You live with Kenzo's sister, so you must've been separated at birth." Akiho insisted, stopping for the time being. She knew this was a lot for her friend to process, but she wanted Taiga to know now before he found out some other way.

Taiga leaned back, touching his computer desk as he took everything in. It was a lot of information.

Part of him still couldn't believe it. How could he be Yuuya's sibling? They were nothing alike, apart from the similar hair colours, but that was it. Taiga thought for a moment, his eyes widening in realization.

 _No, it couldn't be_ , he decided. But it was apparently; their birth dates…

… were exactly the same, right down to their hour of birth now that he thought about it. Did his adoptive mother record these details herself or was she told them by her brother, Yuuya's father? Why was it so scandalous that twins were born and why were they separated?

Taiga didn't understand any of it. What was GIGO trying to keep under wraps? At least now, he understood what Niko had meant when his blonde friend had typed that message to Yuuya. But it had irritated Yuuya and Taiga didn't want him annoyed. He vowed to sort it out.


	2. Chapter 2

**Characters** : Taiga, Yuuya, Akiho and Niko.

 **Chapter word count** : 1600.

 **Story word count** : 3100.

* * *

Taiga's head whirled. It was too much for him to take in. He couldn't believe it, feeling his heart beat quicken. Akiho went to place a reassuring hand on his shoulder, but he surged to his feet, surprising her. A wordless cry burst from his mouth as he tore out of the room, heading for the lift.

"Taiga!" Nikolai called, but he was ignored as Taiga fled. "..." Niko felt a sense of betrayal, of abandonment.

Both Akiho and Taiga knew Niko had issues with his father; so when Taiga ran out, to Niko, it felt awfully similar. Akiho glanced worriedly at Niko, ready to let him know Taiga was just overwhelmed by all the information. She watched with alarm as Niko slammed his fist against the wall.

"Damn it, Taiga! I thought… friends..."

"Niko!" Akiho admonished, causing the blonde to look over at her. She explained that Taiga was still his friend, _their_ friend, he was just finding it too much to deal with at the present moment.

"..." There was that awkward silence again.

Akiho didn't like it, but she couldn't fault Nikolai for thinking like he did. She knew what it was like to be abandoned by family; her own older sister had left her and her parents in the lurch one summer's day, which her father didn't appreciate at all.

"Niko," the pinkette started in a softer tone. "You're okay."

Akiho rubbed her friend's back to reassure him everything would be alright in the end, that they would find Taiga and things would be sorted out.

Niko glanced at her in a sideways manner. "Aki, are you sure? Taiga's never done this before. He's always stopped to talk things through with us."

Akiho nodded, though she could sense the tension evident in the room. "It will be fine." But who was she really trying to convince – Niko or herself?

At any rate, Taiga left his mobile behind, so Akiho picked it up and scrolled through until she found Yuuya's number.

Akiho pressed dial and held the mobile up to her ear. It rang a few times, before Yuuya answered.

"Taiga?"

"Actually, it's Akiho." The girl clarified. She explained Taiga had bolted due to becoming overwhelmed from the information. "Do you know where he might have run to?"

 _Hmm…_ Yuuya paused for a moment, understanding why Akiho had called. This was a serious matter for the other two. "I don't know. Maybe the park?"

Akiho turned and mouthed the words 'try the park' to Nikolai. The glasses-wearing blonde took off immediately, hoping Taiga would be there. He accidentally slammed the door.

Akiho shook her head. "Niko..." She murmured under her breath, feeling the unit shudder slightly. The pinkette turned her attention back to Yuuya, who had started speaking again.

"I hadn't realized he felt as strongly about it as I did."

"I don't think we did, either. I hope he's okay." The girl admitted, feeling more than a bit concerned for her long time friend. She heard Yuuya snort, but she couldn't tell if it was laughter or derision.

"From what I've been able to tell of him, he's a tough character." The Kuga heir ascertained. Taiga would be fine, surely?

Though what if they couldn't? What if they couldn't find Taiga to reassure him that they would sort everything out? Akiho hoped Niko would be able to find their friend, hoped Taiga wasn't too stressed by the information.

"I'm sure Nikolai will find him." Yuuya spoke again.

But how could he be so sure, Akiho wondered. _What if… Taiga didn't want to be found?_ She worried even more and Yuuya must have been able to tell somehow.

Akiho heard the typing of some buttons and a sharp inhale of breath. "Rindou Akiho… I see. You're the number one ranked player. In that case, you're worrying too much. Taiga is just below you, ranked number three. He'll be fine."

"… Wait a minute," she began after a delay. "GIGO has our player rank information?"

Yuuya made a noise of confirmation. "We have to, in order to gauge how skilled players are. We've only got basic statistics, like people's names and how many battles they've won. Nothing apart from that."

"Okay." Akiho gave her response slowly, wondering how much of Yuuya's comment was actually true.

"Hmm?" Yuuya scoffed quietly, getting the feeling Akiho didn't believe what he'd said. It wasn't like he could tell her the real truth, that GIGO had full documents on their players from their names to blood types and even weight and any medical conditions. If he said that… well, trouble.

Nikolai came back at that point, breathing hard. "I… couldn't find… him, but a neighbour said she saw Taiga head past the park, "running frantically". Do I go after him again, Akiho?"

"So he went past the park?" Niko heard Yuuya's voice. Akiho must have pressed the loudspeaker button. _Convenient_.

Akiho placed a hand on Niko's shoulder. "Get your breath back first." She answered, smiling at the blonde.

"Actually, I'll look for him." Yuuya cut in, reminding them both that loudspeaker was still on. "He's heading my way, by the sounds of it, even if he doesn't know it yet."

"Are you sure?" Akiho asked, reluctant to burden the Kuga heir with their problem. It was technically her fault that Taiga had run off, so she was trying to fix it herself.

"Yes," Yuuya replied. He'd been Taiga's penpal for six months and wanted to help in any way possible.

There was some hushed murmuring between Akiho and Niko, before Nikolai spoke. "Can we trust you to find him?"

Yuuya cut his laughter short. "The fact that Akiho rang me indicates you're beginning to trust me anyway, so that's a moot point."

"Right." Niko deadpanned, realizing that was the truth.

"Alright then, Akiho," Yuuya began. "I'll see if I can find Taiga and bring him back with me." With that, he hung up.

Akiho pressed the loudspeaker button again, nullifying the command and hung up on her end. She placed Taiga's mobile on his study desk and glanced at Niko. Now, they just had to wait. The pinkette wasn't good at waiting, but she wasn't impatient either. She couldn't stand being in one place for too long, mainly because of her concern for Taiga. Akiho wondered if telling Taiga that Yuuya was his sibling was the right thing or not.

* * *

The first thing Yuuya wanted to do was grill his father about the information to see if it was at all true. He left his room and headed for his father's office, knowing he would be angry if it was. Yuuya stooped before the door to the office and knocked twice, waiting for a response. When none came, he rapped on the wood a bit harder.

Still no answer, so Yuuya cautiously opened the door, expecting to see his father working on some project related to GIGO. As he expected, his father Kenzo was in the room, but he was talking to someone he'd never seen before. A lady with purple hair was speaking to him as they discussed things through a chat program on the computer.

The woman realized Yuuya had arrived. "I'll be going then, Kenzo." She spoke emotionlessly, ignoring the fact Yuuya had a questioning expression on his face. He witnessed the woman, an Angewomon and LadyDevimon disappear from the screen.

His father turned to him, seeming irritated. "What's the matter, Yuuya?"

"Is it true I have a sibling?" Yuuya got straight to the point, unable to keep the seriousness out of his tone.

Kenzo's eyes widened, before narrowing again. "Where did you hear this?"

Yuuya's own eyes narrowed, as he realized his father was delaying the conversation. "Some friends of Taiga's told me. Something about a scandal years ago."

Kenzo sighed, dreading the fact that his son had been in contact with the boy who was his twin. "I can not tell you the full story, but it is true." His sister was the boy's mother, but neither Kenzo nor his sister spoke to each other much any more.

"Why?!" Yuuya snapped, feeling protective of Taiga all of a sudden. Why did his father and auntie separate them?

"Yuuya..." Kenzo began, trying to calm his son. "There are people in GIGO who are my superiors. They didn't want this getting out; that's the only reason why you were separated."

What? Why? Wasn't the birth of twins a thing in life to celebrate? Wasn't any life born reason to be happy? Yuuya didn't get it. He believed that the higher ups in GIGO were wanting to eliminate them, but for what reason? What were they hiding that they chose to make that decision?

Yuuya figured they had to be hiding something. No one would attack another person with the intent to separate for no reason, right? That seemed fishy in itself. Wanting to know more, he pressed his father for further answers.

"Are they actually trying to hide something, Father?"

Kenzo turned away from his son, fearing the consequences of what would happen if he slipped up and responded to any of Yuuya's questions. "I can not give you the answers you seek. I'm sorry. GIGO management..."

Angrily, Yuuya scoffed, eyeing his parent disdainfully. "Were you always this weak, Father?"

"Yuuya! Please..."

Yuuya turned his back on his father and started walking out, intending to keep his promise to Akiho and Niko. "GIGO scum..." He muttered. "Controlling my father like that." He wasn't only angry at GIGO management, but also his father for letting himself be pushed around like that.


	3. Chapter 3

**Characters** : Taiga, Yuuya, Kenzo and Tamaki.

 **Chapter word count** : 1500.

 **Story word count** : 4600.

* * *

Yuuya stormed out of the building and headed down the street, positive this was the way Taiga was taking. As he strode forcefully, Yuuya shook his head angrily, disgusted at the GIGO superiors' behaviour as they crushed his father and made him meek and cowardly.

His father had never been like that before, so the change must not have taken long to take effect. The Kuga heir vowed to get his revenge on the bosses.

Yuuya continued walking for several minutes, before he heard a somewhat familiar voice call for help. He glanced around and saw Taiga resting by the water fountain, as if he was thirsty from running in his desperation.

"Taiga!" Yuuya called back. "I'm here."

Everything would be alright now that they were together. And if it was true that they were siblings, then he wanted to make their time together all the more memorable. They hadn't seen each other since birth, after all, so it was a relief when Taiga staggered over to him.

"Yuuya… I can't… Are we really twins?"

"My father confirmed that we are, but he wouldn't tell me anything else." Yuuya answered Taiga's question as the other got his breath back finally.

"Why?"

Just as Yuuya thought, Taiga didn't understand it, either. Why would parents keep the identity of their children's relationship secret from them? It's not like they were involved in incest; they were long-lost twins who had just reunited, for Holy Beasts' sake!

 _It really didn't make sense_ , Yuuya thought.

He was supposed to be the smart one who knew almost everything about what happened at GIGO, but Yuuya was learning that was not the case. He placed a hand on Taiga's shoulder to reassure his twin that everything would be sorted out one bit of information at a time.

"I don't… understand. Yuuya, why would they do this?" Taiga asked, still trying to wrap his head around the issue. "How do we know which of us is the older twin?"

Yuuya thought for a moment. "I'm the Kuga heir, so I must have been born first."

 _That would make sense and would explain why he puts so much pressure on himself to excel with his grades and fix his parents' mistakes_ , Taiga realized. The younger twin thought it was cruel for Yuuya to even have to fix his parents' mistakes in the first place, as well as very unfair.

"After I return to the company from dropping you back to your friends, I'm going to look into this myself." Yuuya declared.

He was determined to find out why they kept the information so hush hush for seventeen years. Yuuya believed no one should really keep information like that hidden. Because the Freedom of Information Act beat the Privacy Act any day and that was if Yuuya was in a good mood. But he wasn't, so he intended to scour the internet for every single piece of available data he could find and then fire his father's guards. Yuuya smirked.

* * *

Back at GIGO in Kenzo's office, the man was speaking with his wife on the phone. "Yuzuha, I think the boys have discovered our secret."

On the other end, the woman with black-blue hair let out a gasp. "Are you sure, Kenzo?"

"Quite. Yuuya questioned me about it earlier today." The man answered, his voice somewhat stronger than it had been with Yuuya. There were things Kenzo didn't want his children knowing just yet about their births, so he was going to censor the sites he knew Yuuya would go after to find information.

He hadn't wanted to do this. But Yuuya had given him no choice; Kenzo knew his first-born was dogged in his personality and wouldn't let anything go once he'd sunk his teeth into it. That's why he had to protect both of his children now, despite the fact they would dislike him for it later on.

"You're going to censor everything then?" Yuzuha questioned her husband.

She knew as well as he did that it was necessary, that the whole birthing process had been complicated. They'd been part of a triplet set but, because of the complications, their sister had died. She'd actually been the first-born.

"I will, yes. I'll start after we're finished talking." Kenzo replied.

He didn't think any less of Yuuya for being the second-born, but he did need to teach his son boundaries and when not to cross them. Kenzo knew if he didn't censor the sites, those boundaries would be broken.

* * *

Kuga Tamaki, Kenzo's older sister who didn't get along with her brother, was talking with Akiho and Nikolai while waiting for her nephew to return with her adoptive son.

"So this girl was striding along… and then her dress ripped at the back. It would have been so embarrassing, honestly."

Tamaki was telling the two teens a story of her childhood and a random girl she'd known at the time. It wasn't hard to feel pity for the girl Tamaki was talking about, but Akiho had begun to wonder if the girl Tamaki was talking about was actually herself disguised.

"U-Um, Tamaki-san… Are you really talking about yourself?" Akiho stammered out, remembering at the last second that Tamaki had corrected them on their initial usage of -sama to her name. The woman was perfectly fine with them calling her Tamaki-san. She hated the -sama addition because it sounded too stuffy.

A brief moment's pause, before the woman sighed and nodded. "Yes, although I wish I wasn't. It's why I make a mockery of myself, it keeps the story interesting. No one's ever figured it out that quickly, though. You should be proud of yourself for working it out, Rindou Akiho."

Akiho blushed, as she glanced away to the side. "T-Thanks, Tamaki-san."

She wasn't expecting that, that's for sure. A simple calling Tamaki-san out on her story and she got praised for it. For a second, she was like "huh?" but then decided to run with it. Some people were odd.

* * *

After Tamaki left to go to another room, Akiho turned to Nikolai. "Do you think Yuuya's found Taiga by now?"

Having been resting his eyes from the stress headache he had, Niko opened one eye a little from where he was lying on the sofa. "I'm sure he would have."

"I hope so." Akiho fretted.

"It's nearly evening, Aki." Niko reassured, closing the eye and placing his right arm over his face. His headache was annoying him and Akiho's anxiety only made it worse. "They'll be here soon enough. Don't worry."

Akiho looked down at her hands. "I'm sorry, Niko."

The blonde flippantly waved his left hand. "Don't be. It's in your nature to worry; I'm not holding it against you. Just don't let it consume you." He rolled onto his left and snuggled into the cushion which was acting as a pillow.

Akiho knew what that really meant. It was a gesture Niko used whenever he had a headache and wanted some quiet time to try and get rid of it. So she fell silent, but glanced out of the window as she walked over to it. Akiho couldn't help but worry about her friends; they were like family.

And family… always stayed together, throughout thick or thin, hard times or not. "Taiga..." She murmured as she watched the lights above the driveway to the house turn on. They shone brightly as shadows moved onto the bitumen path.

"Looks like they're waiting for you." Yuuya.

"I can see that."

Taiga! Akiho was so happy, she rushed out to greet them. "Forgive Niko," she gushed, excited Taiga had returned. "He's resting, has a headache."

Yuuya just flashed his famous smug smile, while Akiho chose to ignore the fact Yuuya had been the centre of this problem.

"Sorry Akiho." Taiga apologized.

The pinkette shook her head, relieved to see that her long time friend was alright with no injuries sustained. "Don't be. Niko and I are the ones who should be saying that. I'm sorry we overwhelmed you with so much information."

Taiga hugged Akiho, ignoring a "Trying to rest!" from Niko who shouted from inside the house. They laughed and Yuuya had to laugh along with them. He was just as happy that things were beginning to be sorted out.

Turning his head away, the Kuga heir vowed to sort things out on his end when he returned to GIGO.

After a few minutes, Yuuya cleared his throat. Taiga and Akiho looked over at him. "I'll be going now. I've got to sort things out on my end, if Father hasn't gotten in in front of me like the sly fox he can be."

"Alright, thanks again." They shook hands.

As Yuuya headed back to his father's company, Taiga yelled a "See you around!" which got him a wave in response.

He and Akiho burst out laughing again. Taiga let out a deep exhale and glanced at his surroundings. It was good to be back. He shouldn't have worried them.


	4. Chapter 4

**Characters** : Taiga, Yuuya, Kenzo and Tamaki.

 **Chapter word count** : 1600.

 **Story word count** : 6200.

* * *

With Yuuya asleep that night, Kenzo double checked the sites to make sure they were perfectly censored and the information his son would go looking for was absolutely unavailable to him. Again, he didn't like having to do this, but knew there would be an emotional storm if he didn't.

Kenzo turned the computer off for the night and got into his night clothes. He got into bed and pulled the covers up, shutting his eyes. _Yuuya won't like what I've done when he finds out… and he will know it was me. But I don't mind incurring his wrath_.

Feeling sleep start to overtake him about half an hour later, the man rolled onto his right side and relaxed himself for the night. The last thing on his mind was his anxiety at Yuuya's reaction. While he had decided he wouldn't mind incurring his son's wrath, he just hoped Yuuya wouldn't go too far in his anger.

Kenzo felt Yuuya would understand in due time, but now wasn't that time to be searching for their past. He was only trying to protect his remaining children from the horrible truth of their sister's death. It wasn't right for them presently.

Time passed and morning was upon them, with dawn's first rays shining through his window. Yuuya stirred and got up to go to the toilet, before returning to bed. It was too early for him to be up yet, plus he was still tired. The teen slept another two hours.

It was Black's beeping that finally woke him. The noise was a sharp, incessant ear-splitting sound, so he wondered why he hadn't heard it sooner.

"Alright, Black," Yuuya mumbled sleepily as he got out of bed. "What's wrong?" A jumble of whistles and sharp beeps came back to him as the answer. The boy paused, still trying to wrap his mind around being abruptly woken. "What?" He asked, confused. "The computer has a virus? How?"

A beep sounding like denial responded to his question, which only left him more perplexed.

"Hang on, let me wash my face." Yuuya replied as he entered his en-suite. It was just as extravagant as his room, with a fancy pattern on the wall and state of the art technology.

Yuuya stood over the basin and turned the tap on. He gathered some water in his cupped hands and splashed it on his weary face. The teen did this a couple of times, before reaching for his hand towel to dry his face off. Yuuya put his hand towel back on the rack designated for it and turned to go back to his room. He felt more awake now that he'd done that. More alive.

Sitting down at his computer chair, Yuuya logged in and activated the antivirus program straight away. A few minutes later and the result proved to be negative. "No viruses..." He mused while he thought.

An alert popped up on his phone to remind him he was going to search for information on his and Taiga's past.

"Of course. I wouldn't forget something like that." Yuuya smirked to himself, prompting Black to beep at him once but it was sharp. "I won't get caught, Black."

Yuuya stretched, before settling into his chair and bringing up the internet browser. He typed several words into the search bar and clicked enter. What he found were the sites he was expecting but, when he tried looking into them, Yuuya found the information had been removed.

 _Censored?_ He wondered. _Why would the information I want be censored?_ It didn't make any sense, unless his father… _Damn_.

"Why would Father censor what I was looking for?"

The action his father had taken was irritating for him and Yuuya clenched his hand into a fist, feeling very annoyed. He didn't understand why the action had been taken and was in no mood to see his father about it.

Yuuya tried a few other methods he knew to try and bypass the censoring, but nothing worked. Whatever information had been removed was obviously important to his father for him to do this, but Yuuya didn't care about that any more. He was pissed off, so he lay down again.

Black beeped at him to get up, but Yuuya ignored his V-Pet. After stewing in maddening silence for a good half an hour, the teen finally got up and entered his en-suite again. He knew he wouldn't calm down any time soon, but needed to get ready for the day.

He placed his pajamas on the side table after taking them off and grabbed the shower hose down from where it was. Still quite angry, the teen didn't think about anything as he showered himself; he just went through the routine of cleaning with a mind filled with blank rage.

* * *

Meanwhile, Taiga had already had his shower and breakfast. He had washed the dishes for Tamaki as well, as Akiho and Niko had gone home last night after his safe return. The teen wanted to contact Yuuya, but his adoptive mother advised against it as Yuuya would be dealing with his own problems.

"Trying to research our past, Tamaki-san?" Taiga had asked, but she shook her head.

It was more than just that. "My brother has committed a grievous sin in censoring the sites he knew Yuuya would head for. I imagine your twin is seething in fury right now, as he has been denied crucial information on your pasts."

Taiga looked surprised at how Tamaki knew so much, but would divulge so little.

"It's not my place to say, Taiga." The Kuga woman answered her son fondly. She was deeply displeased with her brother and what he had done, however. Tamaki had requested that Kenzo not interfere, but the younger man would not listen to his sibling.

"Karma will get you in the end, Kenzo." Tamaki recalled saying on the phone to her brother last night. She was a very superstitious person who believed in the supernatural and the likelihood of her brother getting what he deserved because of what he had done.

"I don't care, sister."

Kenzo, on the other hand, was not superstitious and did not believe in the supernatural. He didn't care what happened to him because of karma or whatever else. He was a businessman and, in his mind, protecting his children came first even if they didn't want it.

"Suit yourself, brother."

* * *

Elsewhere at Niko's house, Akiho had dropped over to visit her friend and see how he was going. She wasn't surprised to find the blonde playing with Sashenka, his V-Pet. The pinkette watched from over Nikolai's shoulder as he trained the canine until he realized she was there.

"Oh, Aki!" He exclaimed, falling off his chair in the process due to his surprise at her being there. "Ow, shit."

Akiho laughed, the sound pleasant. "Niko, honestly… Your senses aren't what they should be. I'll have to fix that."

He glared up at her through his pain as he got up. "Shut up," he growled, rubbing his bottom. That had really hurt. Why couldn't she just say she was there instead of acting like a ninja?

Sashenka beeped at him in what he thought sounded like laughter. Akiho smiled at the V-Pet, but Niko thought otherwise.

"Sasha, don't!" He tried rebuking.

Akiho placed a hand on Niko's shoulder. "It's okay. Don't worry about it. I came more to see if you were okay after yesterday's headache."

"Oh, that." Niko sat back in his chair, not putting his full weight on his rear end as it was a little tender. "I'm fine."

Akiho gave him a measured stare. It wasn't that she didn't believe him, she just wanted to make sure he wasn't trying to be brave in front of her. Niko must have realized that as the silence between them became awkward, before he finally relented after a minute or two.

"Okay, I'm not. The headache's gone, so that's fine. I'm just worried about Taiga, that's all."

* * *

Yuuya stalked out of his room, his V-Pet clipped to his shorts. He was in the foulest mood and didn't want to talk to anyone. So when his father asked him to join he and his mother for breakfast, as if he hadn't done a thing wrong in the world, Yuuya just grit his teeth and curled his lip in disdain. He didn't want this.

Like, at all.

He hated the situation his father had placed him in and he hated what he'd done even more. Not seeming to realize that Yuuya was hyper alert because of his rage, his father spoke to his mother about how GIGO's finances were doing really well.

 _Who cares?_ The teen snarled mentally. He had better things to do than be here at the breakfast table, while his father chatted about GIGO resources. Yuuya could think of half a dozen other things that were much more satisfying than talking about idle matters like that.

Oh, he was _so_ livid.

"Yuuya?" His father questioned as the heir jerked his head in the direction of who was speaking. "Everything alright, son? You haven't said a word the entire time."

Underneath the table, Yuuya's fists clenched and unclenched and he tightened his expression even more. "What makes you think there's something wrong?"

The question was practically growled out as Yuuya finally made his rage known. By the time he'd finished the rhetorical inquiry, his teeth were bared in an animalistic snarl and the words dripped venom.

"Yuuya!" His mother, Yuzuha, exclaimed.

"This is your fault as well!" He snapped, tired of restraint.


	5. Chapter 5

**Characters** : Taiga, Yuuya, Tamaki and GIGO bosses.

 **Chapter word count** : 1505.

 **Story word count** : 7705.

* * *

A couple of hours later, Yuuya was still sulking. He had wandered quite literally all over the floors of GIGO, eventually finding himself near the management section. An eyebrow rose, as he realized the irony of his location. _Damn…_ Yuuya thought, but decided to make the most of it.

Another hour had passed and the higher ups were giving him some weird looks, as if they didn't want some lowly worker's son where he shouldn't be. Eventually, two bosses came out of what Yuuya assumed to be a board room and were walking in his direction.

"Shouldn't be here!" One of them called.

Yuuya merely rolled his eyes in response and slouched against the wall even more. If he wanted to rile them up because of what they'd done to his parents, that's exactly what he would do.

"Hey, you're Yuuya! What's the heir doing up here by himself?" The second asked as they neared the angsty teen.

Yuuya scoffed and stared at them, making no attempt to talk. It was clear to him they were, at some point, going to ask him to leave. But right now, he had no intention of doing so, not when his parents' safety was his main concern.

The first opened his mouth again and Yuuya tensed, waiting for the inevitable. "Yuuya, as the Kuga heir, you know this floor is off limits unless your father is with you."

 _Yes, I'm well aware of that, you dolt_. Yuuya had a moment of sarcasm in his head and laughed.

"Hey, what's so funny?" The man's voice rose, indignant at being mocked like that by a child.

Yuuya did not respond for a few moments, before he finally uttered: "Nothing." He knew their weaknesses like the back of his hand and he fully intended to exploit them properly.

"You've obviously got something to hide, so what is it?" The second man prompted, as Yuuya turned to face him.

A smirk crept across Yuuya's visage. He felt appropriately confident to take these two down a few pegs. "How about you leave my parents alone and stop giving orders to them?"

The first boss raised an eyebrow and scoffed. "Who are you to demand that of us, kid?"

"I'm the Kuga heir and this company is by rights mine, if you people weren't dangling puppets everywhere." Yuuya drew himself up so he stood straight and looked them in the eyes.

"You're still just a child!" The second protested. "A minor! You can't just go around telling other people what to do!" His colleague agreed with him, as they stepped closer to Yuuya in an abrupt manner.

A laugh burst from Yuuya's mouth. "Really? You're both adults, yet you tell people what to do. Hypocritical, don't you think?"

The two men couldn't believe what was happening; they were letting themselves be outfoxed by a teenager. And, because he was the heir to GIGO, he was getting away with it.

Not any more.

"Alright, that's enough." The first approached Yuuya. "It's time we removed you."

Yuuya was eerily silent as he raised a brow, that confident smirk still his expression. "You can try all you want; you won't get very far," he murmured.

He was sure his parents would still be waiting for him when he returned. When he did, he wanted to bring them the good news. Yuuya knew his father, especially, would appreciate it most of all. Bowing his head slightly, he realized he would have to apologize to his parents, but that could wait until later.

The men stopped advancing, their expressions changing to fear as if they saw something different on Yuuya's face.

"What?" The teen blinked, surprised that they ceased coming closer. He checked his hands – nothing. So why did they stop walking towards him? "Seriously, guys. What's the matter?"

The first man lifted a trembling hand up and pointed a finger. "E-Eyes..."

 _My eyes?_

Yuuya casually pulled out his pocket mirror and used it to inspect his eyes. "You'll have to do better than that, you two. There's nothing wrong with my eyes." He put his mirror back into his pocket and faced them again.

"B-But… they changed… became red..." The first guy was still mumbling.

Yuuya shook his head, appalled by how ludicrous things were getting. "Like I said, try harder. Anyway, where was I? Ah, I want you people to leave my parents alone. Stop giving them orders about blocking information on our pasts. Do you understand me?"

They nodded and fled.

* * *

Later that day, Taiga was talking to Yuuya as Yuuya had called him on his mobile. Taiga enjoyed talking to his twin, though he wished he could learn about their pasts.

"Basically, I beat them verbally because they spooked over my eyes. I was like what?" The Kuga heir replied.

Taiga considered the events and did have to agree with his brother. He found it weird, too. "Yeah, that is odd. They said your eyes changed and became red? Hmm..."

Like Tamaki, since he'd been raised by her, Taiga believed in the supernatural. Another mystery about the Kugas was unravelling. He couldn't help but become involved in it, since he loved trying to solve mysteries. No matter what they were, Taiga was always found with his nose deep in a mystery book or mystery on the Kuga family.

The younger twin literally couldn't stop himself. Yuuya found it highly amusing.

"I'm sure an answer will come up at some point along the line," Yuuya reassured.

There was no point in brooding on it when it would become obvious later on – that was one of his policies on mysteries. One Taiga refused to agree with, but that was okay. They were brothers now, after all. They would sort things out in their own way. That seemed to be the Kuga way of things, something Taiga was still getting used to.

"How do your parents feel after you beat the bosses? Your father, especially?"

Yuuya smiled. That was Taiga, truly. A godsend.

"I haven't told them yet. The first person I wanted to tell was you." Yuuya admitted, feeling the bond between them grow stronger bit by bit. Is this truly what it feels like to have a sibling, a twin at that? He thought, revelling in being cared for by more.

"Aww, my brother loves me," Taiga poked fun at his twin. "Thanks, nii-san. I must mean a lot to you." Like Yuuya, he loved the fact that there was more than just him now and always had been.

But their pasts still remained a mystery to them.

"And I you." Yuuya scoffed, but this time there was happiness in the sound, as if he reserved his joy only for Taiga. He would look into this supposed 'eye-changing' thing later but, for now, he wanted to relax away from his parents.

"We should go to a camp site one day soon." Taiga suggested suddenly, the idea coming to him. It'd be a nice way to spend a few days apart from their families and they might see other children there, too. That'd be an added bonus – who knows what friends they could make?

"A camp site? Sounds like it'd be fun." The Kuga heir mused on his response. After another moment or two, he made up his mind to tell his parents he was spending a few days away with Taiga next fortnight. He didn't think they'd mind, but he wanted their approval first, just in case something unfavourable happened unexpectedly.

Taiga answered that he was going to see what Tamaki-san left in the fridge for lunch and said goodbye to his twin for the time being. He placed his mobile down on his study desk and got up to go to the kitchen.

"Let's see…" He sorted through some items, finding a ham and cheese sandwich and some apple juice. Those were perfect, so he pulled them out and set them on the dining room table. Taiga sat down at the chair and poured himself some of the juice. He drank a few mouthfuls of that, before becoming very thoughtful.

Tamaki's voice called from the master bedroom, just before she walked out herself. "I didn't think I'd see you again before dinner. That was a long conversation you had with Yuuya." Her laugh was a dainty sound, like wind chimes.

Taiga nearly jumped out of his seat. "Ah, Tamaki-san! Sorry!"

Tamaki shook her head. "No need to apologize, dear. You weren't expecting me, that's all. I'm sorry for being light-footed."

Taiga paused for a moment, going over her words again. The way his adoptive mother had said that was like she wasn't of this world, but that couldn't be true?

Surely not?

Hesitant to reveal his line of thinking, Taiga nervously bit into his sandwich and found that he loved the flavours. Sure, he had had these before, but Tamaki-san's were the best.

"Anyway… I'm going out."

Taiga did a double take as he thought he saw an ear flick on Tamaki's head. _What the…?_

* * *

 **A/N** : In ch 4, I stated that Tamaki believes in the supernatural, while her brother Kenzo does not. As you would have already read, more supernatural elements come into the plotline as of this chapter. Also, Taiga thinks he's hallucinating atm, so he's not sure if what he saw was really there. But that's the great thing about foreshadowing. :D


	6. Chapter 6

**Characters** : Kenzo, Yuuya, Tamaki and Taiga.

 **Chapter word count** : 1500.

 **Story word count** : 9205.

* * *

The two heads of GIGO that had spooked at Yuuya's 'supposed' red eyes were currently in a meeting with each other, talking about what they should do about the heir. He was fast becoming a danger to what what they were hiding.

"Should we encrypt the information?" One asked.

The other shook his head. "If he is as good a hacker as I'm led to believe, even encryption won't stop him." He thought for a minute, wondering how on earth could they prevent him from knowing the truth of his past.

Could they stop him?

* * *

Yuuya had finally approached his parents, wanting to tell them the good news. It was mid-afternoon by the time his father came out of his office and his mother was already seated at the dining room table with afternoon tea waiting for them.

"Hello Father," he began. "Can we talk?"

Kenzo glanced up at his son as he paused in buttering his bread. "Now? Can't this wait?" When Yuuya remained steadfast, the elder Kuga let out a heavy sigh. "Alright, what is it?"

Yuuya explained how he had paid a visit to the office and was spoken to by the two heads of GIGO. He couldn't resist the smirk that crossed his face.

"Are you out of your mind?" Kenzo couldn't comprehend what he was hearing. His own son bested his superiors? Madness!

Yuuya chuckled. "I'm quite sane, Father. Neither of you have to worry about their restrictions any more."

Kenzo went back to buttering his bread in silence, still very much surprised that his son – the rightful heir, in his mind – had done this for them. But what would that mean for the sites that he had already censored? Would he have to uncensor them now, since he knew Yuuya would likely want to look them up?

Kenzo sighed again. Of all the things his son had done for him, this was not what he was expecting. "Bothersome..." He muttered under his breath, eyes flicking to his wife to ensure she hadn't heard him.

Yuuya continued smirking, Cheshire style.

Yuzuha finally spoke. "Please sit down, Yuuya. This is our family time." A gloved hand brushed at her frilly dress, as she motioned at her son with the other.

"Yes, Mother." Yuuya acquiesced and sat down on one chair, politely diving into the rice. He was their son, after all.

They ate the snack-type meal quietly and with little talk in between. Yuuya was still quite proud of himself and continued to feel incredibly happy throughout the nourishment. He thought he would boast about it to Rina the next time she was online, not that he knew when that was.

Finally, they had finished eating and Yuuya excused himself. He headed to his room and lay on his bed for a while, pondering. Now that he thought about it, Yuuya wondered if the bosses would keep their word. It wouldn't do if they didn't, especially after what he just said.

He opened up the contacts list in his mobile and called Akiho's number, waiting for her to pick up.

When she did, a distracted "Hello?" was sent his way.

Yuuya blinked. "It's Yuuya," he answered, speculative on what had her distracted. "Are you able to talk currently?"

Akiho gasped and fumbled with her own mobile, nearly dropping it. "Yuuya-san! I haven't heard from you for a while now. Is everything alright?"

"Mostly alright." The Kuga heir admitted, snorting in amusement. _Oh well…_

A slight pause, before she continued. "Is something bothering you? I'll listen, whatever the problem is."

"I know." Yuuya smiled at that. He was getting to know Akiho better; he appreciated her being there to hear him out. "I'm a little worried the GIGO bosses won't keep their word."

* * *

Tamaki had just gotten back from her shopping trip and was unpacking the groceries into the fridge. She knew now was the time.

Taiga came into the kitchen to help his adoptive mother, who hadn't asked for the assistance, but was grateful nonetheless. Tamaki paused after putting the milk away and wondered how to tell her son she wasn't a true human.

"Are you alright, Tamaki-san?" Taiga asked, confused at the woman's state.

Tamaki merely smiled. "I'm fine, dear. Just trying to figure out a problem." She hummed for a second or two and ultimately decided to go with her gut instinct. "Tell me, Taiga… do you truly believe in the supernatural?"

Taiga blinked as he put away the cereal. "Yes, Tamaki-san. Why?"

"My brother, Kenzo, knows my… _secret_ , has known since we were young. But he refused to believe. I knew you followed after my own footsteps whenever I found your nose in a mystery book or when you researched our mysteries. But you understand I had to be absolutely sure." Tamaki paused again and removed her headband.

"!" Taiga couldn't believe his eyes. An ear? A kitsune's ear no less?! He rubbed at his eyes to make sure he was actually seeing this. "You're… a..."

Tamaki smiled a kitsune grin, her mouth suddenly a lot wider than it had been before.

"I'm a kitsune by birth," she admitted, further explaining that her kind could shapeshift to make themselves appear human. "I am older than Kenzo and he hates me for it, which is why we don't talk very often."

A "Huh?" came from Taiga's mouth, the bewildered teen sitting down so he wouldn't faint from possible shock.

Tamaki changed her features back into those of her human body and smiled lovingly at him. "The firstborn female of every generation are genetically kitsune."

"Firstborn female?" Taiga ran a hand through his hair. "Akiho was saying GIGO hid something in our pasts."

"Unfortunately."

* * *

Akiho had just gotten off her mobile from talking to Yuuya. She knew how Yuuya felt and had done her best to help.

The pinkette didn't like the fact that the GIGO bosses might go back on their word. But, as she had explained to Yuuya, she couldn't intervene beyond her support of him. He understood that and thanked her for listening to him in his time of need.

Akiho sat back in her chair and thought about her other friends, Taiga and Niko, and how they were doing. She knew Niko was busy trying to convince his father to work less and Taiga, she hadn't heard from for a couple of days, either.

Akiho glanced at the clock. Probably a bad time.

As his friend, she wanted to ring him and see if he was doing okay. But some sixth sense told her to hold off on that until a better time. So for now, she stared at the ceiling of her room, until she realized she could talk to Taiga online.

She pushed her computer chair forward and logged into the chat room.

THE **DIGIMON** CHAT ROOM HAS BEEN OPENED

 **Taiga** has entered the room

 **Akiho** has entered the room

 **Taiga** : Hey :)

 **Akiho** : Hi, haven't talked for a bit.

 **Taiga** : Yeah, sorry. -_-; Still a bit shocked.

 **Akiho** : What happened?

 **Taiga** : Tamaki-san told me she was a kitsune… *shakes head, surprised* And I think you were right all along. Not just about Yuuya, but GIGO are hiding something else too.

 **Akiho** : Oh, really? *laughs* And that is a surprise about Tamaki-san.

 **Taiga** : I think we had a sister, but something happened to her.

 **Akiho** : Oh. I'm sorry, Taiga. I had no idea.

 **Taiga** : I won't know for sure until Yuuya fills me in tomorrow. And about Tamaki-san, she said the firstborn female of every generation are genetically kitsune. So our sister…

 **Akiho** : Oh, Taiga. I really am sorry for you.

* * *

Tamaki picked up the phone in her office and answered it. "Yes, brother mine?"

"Would you stop that?" Kenzo barked. "You're not Mycroft."

"Nothing wrong with channeling him." Tamaki growled, as she shifted her vocal cords to her kitsune form. She got back to the matter at hand. "Things are out of your hands now, aren't they? From my end, it looks like your superiors will keep their word and the boys will learn the truth that was denied to them for so long."

"The rightful heir is Yuuya-"

"Is and has always been Yui. Don't deny that, Kenzo. She'd be rolling in her grave if she knew you were dishonouring her memory. She was the firstborn and the true Kuga heir."

Kenzo made a grunt of disagreement. "Never! I will never accept Yuuya as being less than what he is."

Tamaki sighed, changing her vocal cords back. "Very well, Kenzo. I will personally ensure Yui haunts you for the rest of your life. She will never forgive you for this. I know that to be a fact."

The siblings continued to squabble on the matter, until Tamaki had had enough, growling: "Don't you go any further, Kenzo. You lay a single finger on Taiga's head and I will rip you apart. Taiga is a Kuga as well, don't you dare disown him."

"Fine, whatever. Good bye, sister."


	7. Chapter 7

Still shocked a day later, Taiga took a while to respond to Yuuya's call. "Nii-san?" He answered, not sounding himself.

Yuuya picked up on it immediately. "You learned a piece of the puzzle then? Yes, we had a sister. She was older than us. Her name was Yui. She… died. Father wouldn't tell me how she died, but I'm sure Tamaki-san knows. She seems to know more about us than what Father will admit."

Taiga gulped, not out of nervousness, but out of anger. "How could they do this to us? Hide a part of our pasts like that?! Bastards."

Yuuya scoffed at his younger twin's bravado. "GIGO… I'm sure they've done more than that to a whole lot more families than ours. Of that, I am quite sure. We can't be the only ones who suffered."

"You have a point," Taiga admitted, after swallowing his pride. It hurt to admit, however unwillingly, that his initial statement may be wrong. He clenched a hand into a fist and hit his bed sheets with it, making a noise of distress.

How much older had their sister been than them? Why had GIGO fought so hard to keep her buried in time?

They would never know now, unless Tamaki-san had some information on Yui they could both study. Taiga clenched his fist even tighter, until the tendons over his finger bones could be seen more obviously.

He loathed GIGO and all they stood for. He still respected Kenzo, though. That was one aspect that would never change. Though he wasn't sure if he could ever be proud of Yuzuha again, the woman who was his birth mother.

What kind of parent should get the right to make the decision that one of their children had to die, but the others lived? Unforgivable.

Taiga started muttering expletives under his breath and almost jumped when he realized Yuuya was still on the other end, laughing. "Sorry, nii-san. It just makes my blood boil."

"I know." Yuuya's tone changed, becoming more caring. He regretted not being able to see his sister, as well.

The Kuga heir, much like Taiga, had dearly wanted to know what Yui was like. Unless Yui appeared to them as a spirit, they would never see her in life. Having to wait until they had died didn't seem that inviting, either.

Unless… "!" Yuuya had an idea. "What about Tamaki-san, Taiga?"

"Huh?" Taiga sounded confused. "What about her?"

"You said she was a kitsune. What if she had some kind of magic that allowed us to see Yui, even if it was only for a short time?"

Taiga contemplated the request. "It might work. I'll ask her later."

Yuuya desperately hoped that his plan to use Tamaki-san's magic would work so they could see their sister at least once. What would she look like? Would she remember them? It was all up to Tamaki-san now. He would wait an hour for Taiga to ask his adoptive mother and go from there.

* * *

Akiho lazed about her bed for a few minutes, but then remembered Niko was coming over for a visit. She recalled the reason why she had asked him to come over and grimaced slightly. The pinkette hadn't heard from Taiga lately and she was worried if he was doing alright, given what had been revealed to her the last time they spoke.

So she got up off of her bed and smoothed her clothes out, looking once in her mirror to make sure everything was perfect. Akiho had just pulled up her sheets and fluffed her pillow, when Niko knocked.

She answered the door and let Niko in, smiling at his compliment of her looking beautiful. Akiho thanked him and they walked to the dining room together, after she shut the front door. The slightly older girl noticed Niko had Sasha's V-Pet attached to his belt.

"Is Sasha misbehaving?" She inquired, returning her eyes to Niko's face. Akiho knew the boys knew she was the number one player. She found it amusing that Niko had tried repeatedly to take the title from her, only to fail.

So when Niko answered her question, a little ruffled about his Gaomon, she marvelled. None of them would find out for a while yet, but Akiho had wondered from time to time if their partners were real in some form or another.

When Niko cleared his throat and added: "You didn't call me here for that, though.", she decided to get down to business.

"I haven't heard from Taiga for a few days. I'm concerned about how he's going from the last time we spoke." Akiho finally admitted.

Niko paused, considering the statement. "How was he back then?" He queried at length.

"He seemed… worried that the GIGO bosses wouldn't keep their spoken agreement." She hesitated, before continuing. "Maybe they did, though. I've been reading texts Taiga sent me, saying he and Yuuya are bonding even more over their deceased older sister."

Niko was taken aback. "Sister? What?"

Akiho smiled faintly. "They had a sister who was older than them, but she died when she was young apparently. Yuuya's aiming to use Tamaki-san's magic so they can see her at least once."

The blonde's eyes widened in alarm. "I… _don't_ think that's a good idea. The dead should be left to rest in peace. Kitsune or not, tampering with life like that is bad."

* * *

An hour after Niko went home; Akiho was surprised to get a call from Taiga. "Taiga, you've been worrying me," she chided playfully. The lack of contact, texts aside, had made her worry a bit. She had started to feel Yuuya was replacing her as Taiga's best friend.

The pinkette didn't want that; she wanted them all to be friends, but she still felt like Taiga was leaving her behind. It seemed like her fears were unfounded, though.

"Aki, I'll always be your first friend." Taiga reassured her. He would never leave her behind in favour of being with Yuuya.

Akiho smiled. Here was the Taiga she knew. "Thank you, Taiga. I needed to hear that." They would always be very good friends; they still had their ups and downs, but they stuck together. That was the main thing.

"How was Niko?" The Kuga boy inquired. He hadn't really spoken to Niko since he'd taken off that day and that was well over a week ago. Taiga felt bad for not contacting his other friend. He would have to make it up to him.

It was here Akiho faltered. How could she tell Taiga what Niko really thought? "Um, well... He doesn't approve of the idea of using Tamaki-san's magic to revive Yui for a short time. He believes the dead should be left alone."

Taiga considered Akiho's words and Niko's reason behind the protest. "Aki, I really would tell Yuuya no, but..."

"You've already asked Tamaki-san," Akiho figured it out on her own.

She felt disappointed in him that he was going to go ahead with the plan anyway. But more importantly, how was Tamaki-san alright with this? The pinkette shook her head, wanting to talk more. However, she ended up terminating the call. How could he do that?

* * *

Taiga realized Akiho and Niko would be upset with him, but that didn't stop him from wanting to see Yui. Tamaki-san had warned him this was normally a forbidden magic, but since all other kitsune her generation had passed away due to other causes, she decided it would be fine.

Yuuya had come over as soon as he'd heard from Taiga of their request being approved by Tamaki. Both boys were sitting in the lounge room as patiently as they could, though Akiho's last action still played clearly in Taiga's mind. He felt guilty for going against her spoken wishes.

The magic circle was already marked in the centre of the room and starting to shine bright. Yuuya leaned forward, his eyes widening in anticipation. What did his sister look like? Was she human or kitsune at the time of her death? He had so many questions to ask her.

As Yui's spirit started to form in the middle of the circle, a noise of surprise came from Taiga's mouth. Distracted, Yuuya quickly glanced over before turning back to Yui. Then, he saw why Taiga had been surprised. She was in her kitsune form. Had she died as a kitsune?


End file.
